


Listen Close

by RichardGraysonPercyJackson



Series: The Forbidden Love of Nightwing and Deathstroke [9]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU (Comics)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Past Rape/Non-con
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-06
Updated: 2019-04-06
Packaged: 2020-01-05 18:12:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18371408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RichardGraysonPercyJackson/pseuds/RichardGraysonPercyJackson
Summary: Jason meets with Slade to give the mercenary a little bit of information on Dick's past*slight cross-over with "His Past With Her"





	Listen Close

Slade heaved a sigh, spotting the man he was meeting at the bar. He took a seat next to him but didn’t bother to speak first, instead ordering a whiskey and pulling out his phone to do some business.

It didn’t take long for Slade’s informant to lose his patience. “I wasn’t expecting you to come,” the Red Hood murmured against the rim of his glass.

“Well, Richard and I have been keeping our relationship secret from everyone but ourselves,” Slade returned, still scrolling through his phone. “So when you contacted me, saying you knew about us and had some information I’d want, I must say I was curious.”

“Curious?” Jason asked, looking over at him. “Or did you feel like you’d have to put a bullet in my head to keep me from running off to squeal to Brucie?”

Slade barked out a laugh, finally looking over at Jason. “Of course not,” he replied, smirking. “Dick would have my head if I ended your life.”

“Don’t play with me,” Jason demanded. “I know you can end someone’s life and cover any traces that might lead the murder back to you.”

Slade tilted his head as the bartender returned with his drink. “True, I suppose,” he agreed, taking a sip. “So what reason did you call me then?”

“We need to talk about Dick.”

“So I gathered from the cryptic text. What specifically about him?”

“Have you ever heard of Mirage?” Jason asked. “A super villain. Shapeshifter.”

“Sounds familiar,” Slade replied. “But I’ve never bothered with shapeshifters. Never had any interest in tangling with them, no matter how much money I’d get offered.”

“But you’ve heard of her,” Jason stressed.

“I have,”  Slade replied. “What does she have to do with Richard?”

“Have you ever heard of Koriand’r?”

“The alien princess from Tamaran,” Slade replied in lieu of a straightforward answer. “I believe she and Richard were in a relationship several years ago.”

“Yes.”

“And she relates to Mirage how?”

Jason’s reply was blunt. “She assaulted Dick.”

Slade took a moment to process and turn the words over in his head. “How?”

“She took the form of his girlfriend, Koriand’r, and got him into bed with her,” Jason replied, gripping his glass to the point that Slade wouldn’t be surprised if it shattered in the next ten seconds. “And then that bitch  _ flaunted  _ that he slept with her and fucking Kori blamed Dick and-”

“Correct me if I’m wrong,” Slade said calmly, despite the anger boiling under his skin. “But aren’t you working with Kori now? As an Outsider?”

“Yes,” Jason replied. “Doesn’t mean she can’t piss me off. And please tell me you’re not totally okay with this.”

“Oh believe me, I’m not,” Slade replied, glancing down at his phone to make a note. “I have every intention of hunting Mirage down to end her life later. Or at least make her suffer.”

“Good,” Jason said. “I never could find her.”

“I will,” Slade declared. “Is that all?”

Jason heaved a sigh, resting his elbow on the sticky bar top and rubbing his temple.

“God, I wish,” he mumbled. “But no. There’s...one other thing.”

“I genuinely dread what that could possibly be,” Slade said honestly.

Jason sighed. “After Mirage...Dick’s team made him think it was his fault. Made him think he cheated on Kori. So if you ever bring it up to him-”

“I most certainly will  _ not _ .”

“He’s likely going to act like he cheated on her because he should have known better,” Jason said with a sigh. “He doesn’t...he doesn’t see it as rape.”

“Because of his so called friends, I presume.”

“Yeah.”

“Go on,” Slade prompted, despite his rising anger.

“Mirage...wasn’t the only time Dick was assaulted.”

“I see.”

“Have you ever heard of Tarantula?”

“I’ve had the displeasure of meeting her, shortly after Blockbuster’s death,” Slade replied. “She was an unpleasant woman.”

“Yeah,” Jason said quietly. He sithed. “She shot Blockbuster in front of Dick.”

Slade had a really bad feeling about where this was going. “I see.”

“Dick...only told me this after a panic attack,” Jason said softly. “He’s terrified of thunderstorms and rainstorms because...she took him onto the roof in the middle of a rainstorm after killing Blockbuster and...she raped him.”

“And would you happen to know her location?” Slade asked casually.

Jason snorted. “I think one of her limbs is at the bottom of Gotham Bay,” he replied cheekily, flashing Slade a dark smile. “I think her head is somewhere in the sewers.”

Slade chuckled. “You killed her, then.”

“Oh, and I enjoyed every second of it,” Jason replied seriously. “I  _ hate  _ rapists.”

“As do I,” Slade replied. “Although a bullet to the brain is usually enough.”  _ though that woman deserved far worse. _

“Listen,” Jason said, drawing Slade’s attention. “I don’t approve of you and Dick’s relationship. At all. I think you’re bad for him. I can’t shake the feeling that you're going to betray him or hurt him in some way. But Dick cares about you. Maybe you’re just some part of his plan of self destruction, but he cares about you.”

“He does.”

“So go home to him,” Jason ordered. “Make sure he knows you care, if you really do. Don’t play with his emotions because I don’t think he could handle another rejection. Not after Barbara and Kori.”

“I understand.”

“And so help me, Slade Wilson,” Jason hissed. “If I find out you’ve hurt him in any way, shape, or form, I  _ will  _ kill you.”

Slade smirked. “I’ll enjoy watching you try.”

 

……………

 

Slade had had a contract to take care of before returning to the apartment, which meant he was dressed as Deathstroke when he opened the front door.

He rounded the couch and found Dick curled up under a blanket. The acrobat had looked at him for half a second before closing his eyes tightly.

Slade frowned. “Little bird?” he asked softly.

“What are you wearing?” Dick asked quietly.

Slade took a step closer. “Richard-”

“What are you  _ wearing _ , Slade?” Dick demanded. His voice shook, laced with absolute fear and terror.

“My suit,” Slade replied slowly, trying to find some connection between his suit and Dick’s reaction.

“Change,” Dick whispered, curling up tighter and hiding his face in his knees. “Please. Put it away.”

Realization clicked in Slade’s mind and sudden rage flooded his veins before he pushed it down and moved back into the bedroom, quickly stripping out of his suit and into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.

After putting his suit away and out of sight, Slade returned to the living room.

“What’s wrong?” he asked quietly, carefully kneeling in front of the couch and stroking his hand through Dick’s hair. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Dick said quietly, peeking up at Slade over his knees. “Just...just a bad day.”

Slade felt overwhelmed with anger but he controlled his expression into a concerned look.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Dick’s eyes crinkled in what indicated to Slade that the acrobat was giving him a small smile, invisible behind his knees.

“Maybe if I were sure you wouldn’t go on a bloody rampage,” the acrobat mumbled. “I don’t want you killing anyone.”

_ I can’t kill her cause she’s already dead, kid _ . Slade thought to himself. But he didn’t say that.

“I assume then that I’m not going to like whatever is causing this?” he asked, even though he knew damn well what was causing it.

Dick was smiling again as he reached for Slade’s hand which the mercenary took in a gentle hold.

“Yeah,” Dick said softly. “I don’t want you to kill her.”

_ No need to worry. Your brother beat me to it.  _ “I want to know what happened though,” Slade said gently. “And I’d prefer to hear it from you as opposed to having to hunt the information down.”

Despite already having it.

“Why?” Dick asked, teasingly. “Too lazy?”

“This is something that has hurt you, Richard,” Slade said calmly. “It’s only right that you be the one to tell me.”

Dick was quiet for a moment, gazing down at their interlaced hands. “Not today,” he said quietly. “Maybe...maybe some other time but...but not today. I can’t...I can’t think about it today.”

“And that’s fine,” Slade said softly, stroking his thumb over Dick’s knuckles. “Take your time.”


End file.
